That’s about the extent of my knowledge of the Japanese language, unfortunately. But the good news is I have arrived in the land of the rising sun for MLB’s Opening Series between the A’s and Mariners.

There are plenty of things I’d like to explore out here and will share with all of you by putting together these journal entries throughout the week.

But they say the journey is just as important as the destination and the journey I’m coming off of is quite a unique one.

First of all, shout out to my employer, Bay Area News Group, for allowing me to make this trip. Never in my wildest dreams as a child could I have imagined ever traveling to Japan. I would have been happy just to travel outside of California. Even though I’ve been traveling across the country over the past two years on the beat, being on a different continent is a whole new ballgame for me.

Surviving a 12-hour flight

The previous longest flight of my life was about six hours, so the idea of being on a plane for half a day certainly was daunting.

Knowing the 16-hour time difference between Japan and California I spent my last few days of spring training looking up how to such a beast. Should I sleep? Should I stay awake?

I approached relief pitcher Yusmeiro Petit inside the A’s clubhouse at Hohokam Stadium three days before departure and sought advice. He had just spent two weeks in the country last November playing in MLB’s All-Star tour of Japan.

“Whatever you do, don’t fall asleep,” said Petit, recalling the zombie-like state he was in upon landing in Japan for the series in November.

Upon Petit’s wise words I developed a strategy: Netflix and kill (time.)

I downloaded hours of Netflix content and packed my Nintendo Switch for the long trek. I was ready.

Up for 24 hours

Travel day came Thursday and began at 6 a.m. PST with a 40-minute drive from Scottsdale to Peoria to return my rental car. From there it was an hour Lyft ride from the car dealership to Hohokam Stadium where I went through security and boarded a bus to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

It takes about another hour to arrive at the airport, with the bus dropping us off directly on the tarmac just outside of the plane. It’s a chartered flight, so thankfully I find that there is a bit of extra leg space when I arrive at my row 43 aisle seat.

There’s a screen on every headrest and I immediately surf the movie selection. There’s a decent variety of movies that came out from 2015-2018. But one outlier stands out — Mr. Baseball.

Yes, the 1992 sports RomCom about a Yankees slugger who gets traded to Japan is available on a flight full of baseball people traveling to Japan.

It’s an intriguing option, but first I choose to watch “Venom” from the in-flight movie selections.

After Venom I switch over to the Netflix app on my iPhone and begin a binge-watch of the second season of “Atypical.” Three 30-minute episodes to go with a two-hour movie gets me a third of the way through the flight before I finally do it — Mr. Baseball. It’s only right.

Tom Selleck’s sweet mustache kept me entertained. Plus, I figured it might do me some good to actually observe the Japanese culture in the movie in order to compare it to my personal experience once I get there and see how accurate the depiction is.

The movie is just under two hours, which puts me halfway through the flight.

I spent the final six hours completing the second season of Atypical and switched over to watch as much as I could of Parks and Recreation, a comedy series that was recommended after I finished all nine seasons of The Office last year.

I manage to kill four hours with this before pulling out the Nintendo Switch.

Mario Kart Deluxe 8 and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate split up an hour of gameplay before a flight attendant comes by with immigration forms to fill out before arriving at Haneda Airport in Tokyo.

It’s around this time when my battle with fatigue really turns up. I’m struggling to keep my eyes open and all the windows on the plane are shut. My body is telling me it’s getting close to midnight, which has been well past my bedtime all spring. But I’ve come too far to give in.

Just as I’m about to give in to sleep I remember I saved an Uncrustables peanut butter and jelly sandwich given out as a snack earlier in the flight.

Clutch.

I pop open the sandwich and the sugar immediately brings me back alive and fully awake.

We touch down at 4 p.m. Japan time. I did it. I survived the 12-hour flight without falling asleep.

Feeling like a Rockstar

After getting off the plane at Haneda we are bussed over to our terminal where we go through customs and pick up our bags. The A’s players arrive at the same time and together we all make our way to the buses that will transport us to the MLB-sponsored hotel.

Fernando Rodney let all of Japan know the A’s had arrived by busting out his portable speaker and bumping Bad Bunny’s “La Romana” as he went through the sliding doors to exit baggage claim.

I’m not sure how someone like Drake or Justin Bieber feel when strolling through an airport, but I’d imagine it’s something like the walk we experienced through the airport to the buses.

Fans and photographers jammed every corner of the airport snapping photos and begging for autographs from every A’s player that walked by. Walking right behind A’s infielder Franklin Barreto I was even included in some of the selfies some of the Japanese fans got with him. Some actually thought I was a player. It’s a compliment I find laughable but will absolutely take with a smile anytime.

We get to the buses and take an hour-long ride to the New Otani Hotel in Tokyo. As we go through the city I’m immediately reminded of San Francisco. The traffic. The tall buildings. At first glance, the city appears similar to “The City,” only cleaner.

We arrive at the hotel and the place is majestic. It’s like its own little city inside of this place, filled with restaurants and stores.

The employees speak English, so I’m guided pretty easily to the desk where I’m supposed to pick up my room key. But after that, it’s the Wild West.

I mistakenly take a wrong ride up two different sets of elevators looking for my floor before asking a hotel employee how to get to my room. Turns out I’m in a completely different tower on the other side of the hotel.

I reach my room on the 24th floor of the Garden Tower by about 7 p.m. Japan time, which means I’m going on 21 hours without a minute of sleep.

I FaceTime my family back home in San Jose from the room for about 30 minutes and avoid laying on the bed because I know that will likely result in instant sleep.

Sitting on a leather chair in the room I grab the TV remote and figure out how to change the channels. Of course, most of the offerings are Japanese. I came across some interesting shows, including one featuring baseball bloopers with talking heads and funny sounding music. But that only lasted about 15 minutes before I pulled out the MacBook for more Netflixing.

To my disappointment, some Netflix shows from back home are unavailable since I’m overseas. Looking for a comedy show to watch I just started a random episode of Friends and watched a few before finally falling asleep at 10 p.m.

The 24-hour mission was complete. Though I was dead tired, I slept a good eight hours before my alarm went off, then gave myself an extra hour before fully getting up and ready for an 8 a.m. breakfast buffet down by the lobby.

It was crazy, but the 24-hour journey worked. I avoided jet lag and seem to have my body clock adjusted to Tokyo time.

To-Do List

Food is definitely at the top. I’ve received many suggestions on restaurants to hit up out here. Being a big Ramen fan, Ichiran is first up. It’s a famous Japanese ramen staple that I tried in Brooklyn during an A’s trip to New York last season. The location in Brooklyn is the only location in the United States, and if the one in Japan is just as good, I will likely be making multiple trips there throughout my week.

Tokyo Dome City is also a place I’d like to hit. It’s an amusement park right across from the Tokyo Dome and features a fun-looking roller coaster with a couple of loops.

Martin Gallegos is a multimedia beat reporter covering the Oakland Athletics. A native of San Jose, he frequently attended ballgames at both AT&T Park and the Oakland Coliseum as a kid. Prior to covering the A's, he covered the Earthquakes, San Jose State football, and high school sports around the Bay Area. A self-proclaimed "Burrito Connoisseur," Martin is constantly on the search for the best burrito in each Major League city.